What Is Human Services?
What is Human Services?
May M. Miller
What is Human Services? “Human services is a broad term covering a number of careers, but all have one thing in common-the helping of people meet their basic physical and emotional needs for whatever reason cannot be met without assistance” (Martin, pg.4, 2011). To understand how humans function in society, a person needs to understand basic human needs. These needs vary from person to person, however, all persons in society have a need and human services can help provide that. The Goal of Human Services Human service goals can be different for different workers within the field. One common goal is to help people. It has been said that human services is a broad term and that human service is going on whenever one person is employed to be of service to another (Zins, 2001). Expertise and skills of all human service workers will help identify and establish goals for individuals. Individuality is very important to learn key aspects of a person’s life. Gaining respect and trust is imperative to an individual who is venerable and is of need of help. Establishing key necessities for an individual will allow a human service worker to achieve the goal or goals. The History of Human Services Dating back to the Feudal System of the Middle ages to Jane Addams and the Settlement House, human services has come a long way, yet not much has changed in certain aspects. Racial and economic discrimination were in the Middle Ages where the Lord’s had controlled over serfs who were also known as peasants. Lord’s could buy and sell them whenever they deemed fit (Martin, 2011). Today, in the United States, people are subject to this type of behavior just on a different level. Jane Addams, the “mother” of social work began the United States settlement house movement in the 1800s. Social inequality and poverty alleviation were her main focus. Working closely with immigrant families, she
May M. Miller
What is Human Services? “Human services is a broad term covering a number of careers, but all have one thing in common-the helping of people meet their basic physical and emotional needs for whatever reason cannot be met without assistance” (Martin, pg.4, 2011). To understand how humans function in society, a person needs to understand basic human needs. These needs vary from person to person, however, all persons in society have a need and human services can help provide that. The Goal of Human Services Human service goals can be different for different workers within the field. One common goal is to help people. It has been said that human services is a broad term and that human service is going on whenever one person is employed to be of service to another (Zins, 2001). Expertise and skills of all human service workers will help identify and establish goals for individuals. Individuality is very important to learn key aspects of a person’s life. Gaining respect and trust is imperative to an individual who is venerable and is of need of help. Establishing key necessities for an individual will allow a human service worker to achieve the goal or goals. The History of Human Services Dating back to the Feudal System of the Middle ages to Jane Addams and the Settlement House, human services has come a long way, yet not much has changed in certain aspects. Racial and economic discrimination were in the Middle Ages where the Lord’s had controlled over serfs who were also known as peasants. Lord’s could buy and sell them whenever they deemed fit (Martin, 2011). Today, in the United States, people are subject to this type of behavior just on a different level. Jane Addams, the “mother” of social work began the United States settlement house movement in the 1800s. Social inequality and poverty alleviation were her main focus. Working closely with immigrant families, she
References: Martin, M. E. (2011). Introduction to Human Services, Through the Eyes of Practice Settings (2nd ed.). Retrieved from The University of Phoenix eBook Collection database.. Zins, C. (2001). Defining Human Services. Journal of Sociology and Social Welfare, XXVIII, EBSCOhost.